"On the ninth of April, just returned from the masked ball hosted by Countess Valin, I suddenly felt a sense of emptiness. 'A woman, a woman, another woman—endless boredom, aversion, emptiness, and numbness.' 'What joy is there in such a life? Is the very purpose of daily existence merely this?' 'I can't continue like this—I must break free from this state of decline.' 'And, as a reminder, never habitually write Arabic numerals in the usual daily positions.' ...Emperor, do you also have moments of self-reflection and literary sensibility? This doesn't align with the image I have of you! Klein nearly raised a slight eyebrow at this. He glanced downward, settling on the second entry: 'On the eleventh of April, Countess Valin invited me to a private salon, mentioning that Lady Julia would also be attending. 'Ah, this reserved, golden-haired beauty from Roon—will she indeed be there?' 'I'm genuinely looking forward to it!' " "I've been imagining her in bed for a long time—may her husband, Viscount Delien, not mind." Emperor, didn't you forget the journal entry you wrote yesterday? Pfft, truly delicious, isn't it? And you made a spelling mistake—would you mind? Cline couldn't help but offer a few comments. "April 14th. Recently, I've been attending so many events that I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. This isn't a minor issue! Though I'm still young, I mustn't overlook the risk of decline in this area—discipline, discipline! The 'archaeologist' has certainly strengthened my physical condition and enhanced certain abilities, but this isn't their core expertise—it's more of a side benefit. As I continue to advance in rank, the changes brought by the magic potions should deepen further—this will be a key direction for my efforts. It's said that 'pharmacists' specialize in preparing potions with minimal side effects—perhaps I should consult a few of them." "Also, truly practice moderation—indulgence only raises the threshold, and satisfaction actually declines compared to a balanced life. Just take a moment to reflect: there are so many things we can still do. Humans always find themselves bound by desire, failing to see what truly matters. Why did I come here? What hidden secrets lie deep within the stars above? Where did the original consciousness originate? If self-awareness arises solely from consciousness, then before I became Huang Tao—who exactly was I? And who truly belongs to the essence of myself?" Great Emperor, are you now illustrating what it means to be a wolf in action and a philosopher in retrospect? Hey, you're actually concerned about this too—I thought you'd solidified certain traits! Good thing you didn't teach your children Chinese. Hmm, probably didn't. Otherwise, what would they think upon reading this? Zaratustra had prophesied that your eldest daughter, Bernadette, would turn against you, betray you—not without reason... Of course, not instructing them more was simply a form of protection. Cline was amused by Roscel's journal, yet on the surface, he showed no change. To Roscel the Great, the journal was both a repository of knowledge and a collection of jokes. With a thought, Cline turned to the next page: "On the second of October, Zaratustra visited me once again. He hoped that, having now entered the realm of half-divine, half-human, I would fulfill my promise and help him extract from the Church that dangerous seal— a notebook from the fourth-century Antigonus family, a 'Level 1' seal!" Cline's eyes narrowed involuntarily at this point: This must be the very notebook the Confraternity later lost. This must be the very notebook that caused Cline Moretti's death, enabling him to awaken in this world through the body of his deceased colleague! This is the very origin of all things! "It wasn't originally in the hands of the Monastic Order from the beginning—it was sealed within the later Steam and Mechanism Church, which evolved from the Craftsmen's Church. Through King Roscel, Charathus successfully seized it..." "Ah, the Monastic Order member residing within the 'Crawling Hunger' holds great fear of Charathus, perceiving him as an immortal, abnormal monster. Does this suggest that Charathus gained certain advantages through the notes, yet unexpectedly transformed from a being capable of normal communication with Roscel into a monster? Thus, the subsequent loss of the Antigonos family's notes? "Of course, it's also possible that Charathus deliberately orchestrated that loss..." "Hmm... Since Charathus transformed into a monster, the Monastic Order lost all its merfolk, forcing the later 'Faceless Ones' to venture out to sea冒险. Was Rosagora's success due to her attempt to enter the sea that had evolved from the ruins of the Divine War?" One after another, ideas flashed through Caine's mind, making his inner resolve feel unusually heavy. He did not yet believe that the incident involving Antigonus's notes was closely tied to Rosel, as his initial hypothesis had centered on the Law of Aggregation of Exceptional Traits, and several subsequent details aligned well with that logic. Did they all relate to the higher echelons of the "Seer" path? Caine glanced briefly at the horizon, absorbing the quiet, boundless gray mist into his vision. Could it be this that had caused it? He asked himself again. Calming his emotions, Caine turned to continue reading the subsequent entries in the journal: "Well, I'll see how it goes. If it's easy to execute and poses little risk of exposure, I'll try to do it. Otherwise, I'll simply treat it as nothing. Even if Charathus exposes me, it won't matter—given my current status, rank, influence, and position within the Church, as long as I'm willing to turn back and reform, the Church will have no recourse against me." The two additional entries on this page document Rosel's evolving thoughts on the plan to execute the theft, yet both appear to have little chance of success. Nevertheless, Klein knows that he ultimately secured the notes and delivered them to Zaratustra, the head of the Conclave. After a brief pause, Klein turned the page: "On the tenth and twelfth days, I attended yet another gathering of that ancient and secret assembly. "At the gathering, I observed a consistent and strong hostility toward the Fourth Age Solomon Empire. "I raised this point, and the venerable Hermes promptly provided the answer: during the Fourth Age, the Solomon Empire's allies and supporters were the 'True Architects.' "This is indeed accurate. "I restrained myself from asking about the specific actions our organization had taken during the Fourth Age, but upon returning to my palace in dream, I noticed that Hermes's route this time partially overlapped with mine." "Certainly, the ancient human who survived the Great Cataclysm must know a great deal. I approached him with sincerity and asked him a straightforward question: why does the organization so deeply resent the 'True Creator'? Is it merely because He uses the sacred title of 'Creator'? "Mr. Hermes chuckled warmly. 'We're not such shallow beings,' he said. 'He then asked me, Do you clearly understand the specific abilities of the 'Shepherd'? 'Of course,' I replied. 'He then asked me with a thoughtful tone: 'If you had to choose one deity from among all the current gods and envision their evolution toward all-knowing, all-powerful divinity, who would you pick?' 'This... the very first thought that came to me was the 'Shepherd' path—the one capable of consuming, tending, and guiding the souls and attributes of other sequence beings. And that very path culminates in the 'True Creator'." "So that's it..." This page, though containing only one entry, carries a substantial amount of information... The Solomonic Empire originally belonged to the "True Maker" faction... Ah, within the underground ruins of the Tudor family, there are six life-sized statues of the divine beings. While it's not yet certain whether they were venerating the gods or profaning them, it's clear that these six deities were actively involved in the affairs of the three great empires, and later developed particularly close ties with the Trenzostor dynasty. If the three great empires each represent distinct divine factions, then... Klein is striving to interpret the hidden truths of the preceding age through his own archaeological discoveries and historical knowledge, yet the fog of uncertainty still remains. Regarding Hermes, the most ancient master of esoteric wisdom, Klein's answer closely aligns with Roscel's: as the sequence advances, the saints and angels on the "Shepherd" path gain ever more extraordinary abilities to shepherd souls; ultimately, if the "True Creator" can shepherd the divine beings corresponding to twenty-one additional transcendent paths, then, in a sense, He becomes a fully omniscient and omnipotent Creator. There are still many secrets hidden within the Sequence path... Klein turned to the fourth page of his journal. This entry documents Roscel's actions after consuming the "Universal Knowledge" potion—he read and studied extensively, laying a solid foundation, and significantly broadened and deepened his knowledge to new heights. During this period, he had scarcely any leisure activities; learning itself became his greatest form of entertainment. In one of his diary entries, he wrote: "When a person clearly knows that after putting in effort, results are certain and can directly observe the extent of those results, he will surely strive as fiercely as I am doing now." Isn't this precisely the core appeal of many games? Klein turned to the final page of the diary and began reading the ancient divine legends provided by the little 'Sun'. Throughout this time, the grand palace remained silent, with both 'Justice' and 'Moon' reflecting on what they would trade or exchange next. "The recluse" Gauthier encountered something similar for the first time, yet remained neither awkward nor uneasy—instead, she carefully analyzed the information conveyed by the scene: "This isn't the first time this has happened... The 'Card of the Fool' has a habit of reading Roscel's journal at Tarot gatherings... Members are actively or passively gathering information for Him, though it's unclear whether they've been compensated in advance. 'Can He truly understand Roscel's journal? Is He searching for the secrets that have been lost in the long river of history?' Just now, the 'Sun' mentioned that the materials he submitted were legends of the ancient gods—this aligns with my initial expectations." At that moment, Caine had already gone through the new materials on the ancient gods. In the Second Age, during those dark times, each ancient god had a corresponding "spirit" attached to Him—much like Angerwid, the 'Dragon of Imagination,' and His child, Alerusheid, the 'Dragon of Dreams.'